THE top five includes two Brownlow Medallists and three 300 gamers, but Port Adelaide’s Jack Hombsch is about to overtake them all to set a unique AFL record if he takes to the field at Mars Stadium in Ballarat on Sunday.
In 94 AFL games, Hombsch has played at 19 different venues, the only current player to have played at more than 18.
The only other players in history to have played at 19 different venues are former Essendon and Hawthorn great Paul Salmon and 383-game St Kilda dual-Brownlow Medallist Robert Harvey.
Among the players locked away on 18 venues played at are former Port Adelaide players Gavin Wanganeen and Stephen Paxman along with current teammates Robbie Gray, Justin Westhoff, Travis Boak, Brad Ebert, Tom Jonas and Ollie Wines.
Hombsch’s record shows that of the venues he has played at, he has never won at seven of them including losses in his solitary games at Bellerive Oval, Stadium Australia, and Blacktown Oval when he played for the Giants.
He is also winless at Kardinia Park - where his only game came last season - at Marrara Oval where the Power lost to the Western Bulldogs in 2013, at Perth’s Optus Stadium in two visits this season, and at York Park where his side was beaten by Hawthorn in Round 11.
Of the venues currently still being used, Hombsch is yet to play at only Cazaly’s Stadium in Cairns and at Mars Stadium in Ballarat, the latter he will cross off the short list on Sunday if selected.
As a club, Port Adelaide has played at 21 different venues in its AFL life, including just once at Bellerive Oval in Tasmania and once at Mars Stadium in Ballarat.
Like Hombsch, the Power has never featured in a game at Cazaly’s Stadium in Cairns.
Interesting stat... if Jack Hombsch plays Round 19 at Eureka Stadium in Ballarat, he’ll set a new ‘played at the most venues’ record pic.twitter.com/Bc8z584vdk
— Mike Hugo (@FootyPlaces) July 10, 2018
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